# Founding Software Engineer

> Raydar · San Francisco, United States · Full-time · Posted 2026-09-30

**Salary:** USD 200,000–300,000

**Workplace:** on_site

## Description

About the company

Our client is an early-stage software company.

The role

Raydar is recruiting for this role on behalf of our client. Own and build core product functionality end to end as a hands-on individual contributor, working in close partnership with a co-engineer. The focus is on designing automated systems that monitor and improve themselves, while integrating cutting-edge models into a fast, reliable user experience.

What you'll do

\- Own the core product across front end and back end, sharing coverage with a fellow engineer.

\- Design self-improving automation that reviews error logs, applies fixes and reports changes for human review, rather than patching issues one by one.

\- Integrate a range of current and specialized open-source models so the overall pipeline feels fast and seamless.

\- Work toward shorter processing times, lower cost per output, a more delightful user experience and greater system stability.

\- Collaborate with a machine learning engineer to train small on-device models for specific parts of the pipeline.

## Requirements

What we're looking for

\- 3 to 8 years of engineering experience.

\- Deep, demonstrable experience in building agent-based harnesses and automation that improves itself.

\- Well-rounded generalist skills, solid in both front end and back end without being narrowly specialized.

\- Close familiarity with the latest model developments, open-source models and agentic pipelines.

\- A track record of building something comparable, for example as a core engineer or core open-source contributor.

\- Strong individual contributor who can hold a whole system in their head, not a people-management profile.

\- High agency, low ego and real interest in creative media tools.

\- Comfort with an intense, all-in startup pace.

Bonus points

\- A creative side, such as making music or content, with real artistic intuition.

## Benefits

Compensation and benefits

\- Base salary: USD 200,000 to 300,000 per year

\- Equity

Location and work model

\- San Francisco, California, United States

\- On-site, in office

\- Full-time

## Apply

[Apply at Raydar](https://apply.workable.com/raydar/j/4BAC9527A2/apply)

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